


科

by lethargicProfessor



Series: tintype afterimage [3]
Category: D.Gray-man
Genre: Angst, Family Feels, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Introspection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-14
Updated: 2016-02-14
Packaged: 2018-05-20 07:38:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5997184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lethargicProfessor/pseuds/lethargicProfessor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He was nineteen when they took her away.</p>
            </blockquote>





	科

He was nineteen when they took her away.

He was only a kid himself, really, still coping with the loss of his family and the sudden responsibilities that came with raising a child. Lenalee was good, calm and quiet and cheerful, but there was so much more to taking care of her than anything he had ever experienced.

He was scared he would fail, fail his sister and his family. They counted on him, and he had promised to take care of her no matter what. Despite the anxiety and the pain, he did what he could, because seeing her smile was worth it.

Then they showed up.

The CROW, on red wings, with orders to take Lenalee away. (He didn’t understand, at the time, the words flying over his head: _innocence, akuma, accommodator_. He fought them as best as he could, until the CROW grew tired of his meddling.)

He was lucky to be alive.

Without Lenalee, though, it didn’t really matter.

-

He was twenty-one when he saw her again.

He had heard from the others – from Bak and Renny – that she had been kept under watch since she first tried to run away. He hadn’t thought about what that meant until he faced the guards at the doors, breathing heavy and strained as he fought to keep his temper under control.

(Part of him wished he had convinced Bak to go with him, if only for the support. He hadn’t felt so small, so powerless, in such a long time.)

The doors creaked open, unbearably slow, and the guards allowed him to step into the room.

Komui felt his heart stop, frozen at the threshold as he gazed at the bed and the tiny girl strapped down to it.

She almost looked like a doll, dull and dazed, probably sedated to keep her calm. The straps wrapped around her wrists and ankles were reinforced with CROW sigils, and in a vindictive sort of way, Komui was glad to see his sister had put up so much of a fight.

“Lenalee,” he breathed, hating how his voice cracked. His hands were shaking as he slowly reached out, brushing the hair out of her face. She fussed at the contact, squinting against the bright spotlight trained above her.

“Is this real…?” She asked, voice hoarse.

Komui broke down, kneeling at her bedside.

He had failed once. It wouldn’t happen again.


End file.
